5 Creative Ways To Scatter Cremated Remains

If you, your friend or loved one has decided to opt for cremation, scattering the ashes is an ideal way of celebrating a life well lived. Some people love the fact that their cremated remains can travel to the four corners of the earth instead of remaining in a fixed resting place. Far from being a straight forward event however, scattering remains raises infinite possibilities. Here are five creative ways to scatter cremated remains. Which one will you choose?

#1. A Memorable Or Favorite Location

First on our list is the idea of scattering the ashes at a certain location. This is typically a memorable or favorite location of the deceased. In this scenario, all of the ashes are scattered at once, usually after a religious ceremony or remembrance service. Most people choose a stream, river or lake as they are committed to the idea of their remains travelling a great distance after they have passed on.

#2. Separate Scatterings

According to the Cremation Association of North America (CANA), the ‘industry standard’ size of a cremation urn is 200 cubic inches. However, there smaller urns are available meaning that instead of one scattering, you could have several. Smaller urns are known as ‘sharing’ urns and the smallest urns are known as ‘keepsake’ urns. Having cremated remains shared out in this way opens up many creative possibilities. You could have one scattering ceremony with a portion of the ashes and then give several smaller urns to family members. Alternatively, you could ask different family members to scatter the ashes in different locations simultaneously.

#3. Jetsetter Scatterings

The very smallest urns, keepsake urns, contain only a tiny portion of ashes. Using these urns gives multiple family members the opportunity to keep some remains and scatter others. Jetsetter scatterings are where family members hold onto keepsake urns and scatter the ashes at various locations around the globe. Instead of one large event, family members simply take the urns as their go on vacation and scatter the remains in accordance with the wishes of the deceased. Most people want to be scattered near memorable places they visited during their lifetime such as the Eiffel tower or the Grand Canyon. Others want to be scattered at places they never had a chance to visit during their lifetime.

#4. The Earth Orbit Scatter

Celestis, a space burial company, offers people the chance to pay for a portion of their cremated remains to be sent into space. Each gram costs serious money so most people elect to pay for just one gram of their ashes to be sent into earth orbit onboard a Celestis spacecraft. These launches take place alongside a real commercial or scientific satellite. The remains will stay in earth orbit for between 10 and 240 years, until re-entering the atmosphere, ‘harmlessly vaporizing like a shooting star in final tribute’ according to the company.

#5. The Deep Space Scatter

For those with serious cash to burn, the Celestis Voyager Service is planned to launch cremated remains on a voyage through deep space. Unlike the earth orbit flight, these capsules will leave the Earth-Moon system on a permanent celestial journey. Planned for 2016, these launches will be ideal for people who want their ashes to sail forever through the infinity of space. Obviously a hit with sci-fi fans and Star Trek aficionados, the chance to have remains go on a true deep space voyage is one of the most creative ways of scattering ashes. The only drawback is that, like the earth orbit flight, the ‘symbolic’ portion of ashes is only one gram in weight. You will still have plenty of cremated remains to give to family members or scatter on earth.

Conclusion

Anyone considering cremation in New Haven CT who hasn’t yet decided how to scatter their ashes will surely be inspired from some of the ideas on this list. A key theme linking all of these ideas together is the idea that you don’t have to choose just one way of scattering ashes. You can divide up and share the ashes to have them scattered in a variety of ways at different locations. If you have already made a decision about where and when to scatter the cremated remains of a loved one, let us know your creative ideas and leave us a comment below!